Tag: shepherd

Categories
Proverbs Devotionals

Tending our sheep

Know well the condition of your flock,
and pay attention to your herd. (Proverbs 27:23)

Those words made me stop and think a bit about those God has given me to care for. My wife. My daughter. People in my small group.

Do I know well their condition? Do I pay attention to their needs? 

Why is that important? 

One reason is found in verses 24-27. Not only will they be blessed by us. But the day will come when we will be blessed by them. 

But more importantly, we have our own Shepherd’s command. 

He said to Peter. “Do you love me? Then feed my lambs. Take care of my sheep. Feed my sheep.” (John 21:15-17)

He says the same to us. We cannot separate love for Jesus from our love for others, especially those God has put in our care. 

Who has God put into your care? Do you know their condition? Do you pay attention to their needs?

Categories
Psalms Devotionals

A prayer to the Rock of my salvation

Psalms

Lord, you are the Rock of my salvation. Just as the rock was struck at Massah and Meribah giving the people life-giving water, you were struck on the cross giving me eternal life (Exodus 17:1-7, I Corinthians 10:4, John 4:10-14, 7:37-39).

I rejoice in you, Lord, because you have triumphed over Satan, sin, and death! And I’m so grateful for the grace that you have given me. (Psalm 95:1-2)

You are the great God, the King of all other “gods.” You are the Creator of all things. (3-5)

So Lord I bow down to you. I worship you. You are my God, my shepherd. I am your sheep. I am yours. (6-7)

Help me to always remember that, Lord. When trials come and I’m struggling, let me never question you, asking “Are you really with me?” (Exodus 17:7)

You’ve already proven your love and goodness to me. So help me to trust you. And no matter what happens to me, let me enter your rest, rejoicing in you today, and every day.

Thank you Lord for your goodness.

Categories
Psalms Devotionals

His name is Yahweh

Psalms

In the Bible, we find that God’s name is Yahweh. (Exodus 3:15)

Unfortunately, most translations obscure that name by translating it as “LORD” in all capital letters. But whenever you see “LORD” in your Bibles, know that it is the divine name “Yahweh.”

But many times, other words are added to that name, and we see even more clearly what kind of God he is.

In Psalm 23, we find that God is “Yahweh Raah,” Yahweh, our shepherd.

But in our times of need, we also find that he is “Yahweh Yireh” (Genesis 22:13-14), Yahweh, our provider. (Psalm 23:1)

When we are lost and hurting, he is “Yahweh Rapha” (Exodus 15:26), Yahweh, our healer. (Psalm 23:3)

When Satan accuses us, God is “Yahweh Tsidkenu” (Jeremiah 23:6), Yahweh, our righteousness. (Psalm 23:3)

In our darkest times when we are fearful, he is “Yahweh Shalom” (Judges 6:24), Yahweh, our peace.

In those times, he is also “Yahweh Shammah” (Ezekiel 48:35), Yahweh, ever-present. (Psalm 23:4)

And in the face of our enemies, he is “Yahweh Nissi” (Exodus 17:8-15), Yahweh, our banner. (Psalm 23:5)

So as we face different situations in our lives, let us never forget who God is.

He is our shepherd, but he is much more than that. He is also our provider, healer, righteousness, our peace, our ever-present one, and our banner.

Categories
Matthew Devotionals

Kicked out of our comfort zones

Matthew

Today I read a passage very familiar to me.

When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:36-38)

Two things struck me that I had never thought of before. Matthew says that the people were distressed and dejected like sheep without a shepherd.

The words “distressed and dejected” have the idea of being torn and cast down.

As I thought of that image, I then recalled what Jesus had said to the Pharisees earlier in the chapter.

Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice. (13)

Many of the sheep the shepherds raised in Israel were meant to be used as sacrifices. But in Jesus’ eyes, these torn and cast down sheep were not just meant for the sacrificial altar.

Jesus had a heart filled with compassion for these sheep and he longed to show mercy to them. To care for them. To heal their wounds.

And that’s what he did.

But living as a man on earth, there was a limit to what he could do.

And so he sent out his disciples to reach out to the mass of lost sheep scattered throughout Israel. And then he sent 72 more people out so that they could reach even more sheep.

But before doing so, he told his disciples to pray that God would send out more workers.

That word “send” is a very interesting one. It literally means, “drive out.” It’s the word that is often used for driving out demons.

Interestingly enough, it’s the same word that is used for the Holy Spirit driving Jesus out into the wilderness to be tempted.

And here, Jesus says, “Pray to the Lord of the harvest that he would drive more workers out into the harvest field.”

It’s what God did with the early church when they got too comfortable doing “church” in Jerusalem.

Jesus had told them to go out into the whole world and preach the gospel. They hadn’t even gotten as far as Samaria yet. Many of them were still stuck in Jerusalem.

So God used persecution to drive them out of Jerusalem. The result? They started sharing the gospel everywhere they went. (Acts 8:1-4).

Is it possible that God needs to do that to his people again?

How many of us, (and I include myself in this), are far too comfortable with our lives? How many of us lack the compassion for the torn and cast down as Jesus was?

Lord of the harvest, drive out more workers out of their comfort zones and into the harvest field. Give them your heart.

Give me your heart. Here am I. Send me.

Categories
Jeremiah Devotionals

The faithfulness of our Shepherd

Jeremiah

As I look at this passage, I can’t help but see the faithfulness of our Shepherd.

You see it in his faithfulness to Israel. He told them,

The people who survived the sword
found favor in the wilderness.

When Israel went to find rest,
the Lord appeared to him from far away.

I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore, I have continued to extend faithful love to you. (Jeremiah 31:2-3)

Jeremiah seems to be referring to all the people returning from Babylon, but you could also point to Jacob (whom God named “Israel”) and the nation of Israel as they came out of Egypt.

Jacob survived the sword of his brother Esau and was forced to flee his home. But in a time when Jacob was fearful and broken, the Lord appeared to him showing him faithful love.

Why? Because Jacob deserved it?

No, he was a con man who was constantly deceiving people and taking advantage of them.

Rather, God was faithful to him because out of His everlasting love, He had chosen Jacob before he was even born.

The same can be said of the Israelites when they escaped from the sword of Egypt.

God didn’t save them from the Egyptian army because of their faithfulness to him, but because of his faithfulness to them and the promises he had made to their ancestor Abraham hundreds of years earlier.

And now, though God was disciplining his people because of their sin, because of his everlasting love toward them, he promised to show them grace once again and bring them back to their own land.

I almost think that Jeremiah remembered Psalm 23 as he wrote this passage. You can see many of the themes in that Psalm in this passage.

God brings his sheep back to himself. (One meaning of “he restores my soul” is “he brings me back.”) (Jeremiah 31:8-13)

He gives his sheep rest, refreshing their weary souls. (25)

He leads them to water and down paths of righteousness, not because they deserve it, but for his name’s sake. (9)

His rod of protection delivers them from the enemy. (11)

He prepares a table filled with abundance for his sheep, and God’s goodness follows them (12-14).

And though they walk through the valley of the shadow of death, he walks with them and gives them hope. (15-17)

Jeremiah then essentially finishes this chapter the same way he started it: by talking about the faithfulness of God.

He promised a day when God would make a new covenant with us, a covenant not based on our ability to keep the law in our own strength, but on God’s grace.

A covenant in which he puts his law into our hearts, forgiving our sins and remembering them no more. And once again God says of us,

I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know me, from the least to the greatest of them”—this is the LORD’s declaration. (Jeremiah 31:33-34)

So in times of trouble like we’re going through now, let us remember the faithfulness of our Shepherd, and rejoice! 

Categories
Psalms Devotionals

The 23rd Psalm from the Lord’s perspective

Psalms

Last Sunday, I heard a message touching on the 23rd Psalm, and it helped me to see the Psalm from God’s perspective.

I AM your shepherd; you shall not want.

I make you lie down in green pastures.

I lead you beside still waters.

I restore your soul.

I lead you in paths of righteousness for my name’s sake.

Even though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
fear no evil,
for I am with you.

My rod and my staff,
they will comfort you.

I prepare a table before you
in the presence of your enemies;

I anoint your head with oil;
your cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow you
all the days of your life,
and you shall dwell in my house forever.”

Categories
John John 10

The Gate

John

Many people wonder, “Why does Jesus have to be the only way to God?”

The short answer: because he said so.

Jesus told the people,

I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. (John 10:1)

There are many people that try to tell us how to go to heaven.

The Pharisees said it was by a rigorous keeping of not only the law, but of the rules and traditions that they held to as well. Even today, many people try to enter heaven through their efforts.

But Jesus tells us that anyone who tries to enter heaven through any other way than the gate, is a thief and a robber.

And not only do they try to grasp what they can never achieve through their own efforts, they will steal your souls and send them to eternal judgment if you follow them. Jesus said,

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. (John 10:10a)

Here, I believe Jesus is talking about the great Thief, Satan. But Satan will use people to try to lead us to spiritual destruction.

This is not to say that these people themselves are aiming to destroy us. Their intentions are generally very good. But they have been deceived themselves, and if we follow them, we’ll follow them right into the pit.

What then is the gate that we are to enter by? Jesus said,

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. (John 10:9)

The picture Jesus gives us here is very interesting.

When a shepherd went out into the field and put the sheep to rest, he would take them to a temporary fold that had only one entrance. And when the shepherd went to sleep, he would sleep right at the entrance. He literally was the gate.

Jesus is saying here that if you want to enter God’s kingdom, if you want to live a life that is truly blessed, it can only come through him. And anyone who tells you different is a thief who will lead you to destruction.

Again, Jesus said,

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. (John 10:10a)

But then, he concludes,

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10b)

Do you want a full life? A complete life? There is only one way. There is only one gate. The only question is, will you use it?

Categories
Psalms

Remembering the goodness and love of God

Psalms

The first verse pretty much sums up all of Psalm 136.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.
“His love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:1)

This whole psalm is about God’s goodness and love toward his people.  But as we look at it, we see just who God is to us.

It begins by talking about how he is the “God of gods” and “Lord of lords,” continuing one of the main themes of Psalm 135.  (verses 2-3)

It then talks about him as Creator, the one who created the heavens and earth.  How in his wisdom and power, he created all things.  (4-9)

God is then worshiped as the Redeemer.  The one who delivered the people of Israel from Egypt, by striking down the Egyptians, and bringing the Israelites through the Red Sea.  (10-15)

The psalmist then remembers God as Shepherd, leading the people through the desert, providing for their every need.   (16)

We next see him as the Mighty Warrior, defeating powerful kings and great cities, as he brought Israel into the promised land, and giving it to them as an inheritance.  (17-22)

In verses 23-25, the psalmist proclaims God as the God of grace and mercy.  As one who saw the lowly state of his people, and delivered them.  Who not only provided for their needs, but provides for the needs of every creature he has created.

And finally, we see God as the Lord of heaven.  The one who reigns over all.  (26)

I mentioned in an earlier blog the dangers of cynicism.  One of the weapons against cynicism in our lives is thanksgiving.  Remembering who God is and what he has done for us.

Remembering that he is God and he is in control, even though we can’t see it sometimes.

Remembering how he redeemed us from Satan’s kingdom and eternal death.

Remembering how even now, he is leading us as pilgrims on this earth and will bring us into the kingdom he has prepared for us.

How he is the mighty warrior and will help us in the battles against the spiritual forces that we face every day.

How when we fall, he shows grace and mercy to us, and lifts us back up.  That he never leaves us nor forsakes us.

So every day, let us remember these things.  Let us focus on these things.  And let us sing with hope as the psalmist did,

His love endures forever.